An Electrician’s Tools of the Trade

Posted Wednesday, Mar 27, 2013 by Allen B. Ury

As an electrician, you will likely use a variety of specialized tools in the course of your daily work. Proper use of these electrician’s tools requires both training and practice. Once you master these tools, you’ll find they significantly enhance the speed, quality and safety of your professional performance.

Here are some common tools of the electrician’s trade.

Pipe and Tubing Bender – These are used for custom-forming the metal conduits through which wires run.

Fish Tape — A coiled tape or cable used to pull wire through new conduits.

Specialized Pliers, including:

Cable Cutters — A highly leveraged pair of pliers that allows you to cut through thick, heavy cable.

Crimping Tool — These pliers allow you to twist two wires into each other, forming a functional splice.

Diagonal Pliers — These are pliers with a sharp, blade-like nose. You use these to cut small-gauge wire, and you can also remove nails and staples. These are also referred to as “side cutters” or “Dikes.”

Lineman’s Pliers — These are heavy-duty pliers you use to cut, bend, crimp and pull wire.

Needle-Nosed Pliers — These are a small pair of pliers with a long, narrow nose that you can use to grip, twist, cut and strip fine-gauge wire.

Wire Stripper — This type of plier has a variety of gage hole dimensions in the tool. These allow you to cut and remove a wire’s insulation without harming the exposed metal wire beneath.

Electronic Test Instruments, including:

Voltage Indicator — This is a simple electronic instrument used for determining the presence (or absence) of electric voltage in a particular device. It is also known as a “test light.”

Multimeter — This is a more complex instrument that, depending on the model, can be used to test for:

Voltage

Resistance

Current

Insulation Resistance Tester — This device sends several hundred to several thousand volts into wires and cables to test the level of resistance their insulators provide. It is also known as a “Megger.”

Clamp Meter — A meter with two jaws that can be closed around a wire testing various current properties without having to make contact with the actual electrical conductor. Also known as a “clamp-on amp meter”

Hand Tools — In the course of their work, electricians use common hand tools such as screwdrivers, hammers, saws,punches and chisels.

Learn the Electricians’ Trade at WyoTech in Long Beach

If work as a professional electrician appeals to you, you can prepare for a career in this challenging and rewarding field with the Electrician training program at WyoTech in Long Beach, Calif. This nine-month program can teach you the theory and skills necessary for entry-level apprentice positions in the residential, commercial and industrial electrician fields.

Graduates of WyoTech’s Electrician program can get support from the school’s Career Services department, which provides help with resume preparation, interviewing techniques and identifying and contacting local employees.